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(ModeL) G. W. CONVERSE.

WATER WHEEL N0. 281,459. Pa cented July 17, 1883 ATTORNEYS UNITE STATES,

PATENT OFFICE.

. GEORGE W. CONVERSE, OF SPOKANE FALLS, W'ASHINGTON TERRTTORYPWATER-WHEEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 281,459, dated July1'7, 1883. Application filed SeptemberIE), 1882. (ModeL) I H To all whomit may concern:

Be it known that I, G. W. CoNvERsE, of Spokane Falls, in the county ofSpokane and Territory of Washington, have invented a new IO jectobliquely against the sides of the bucket,

on which it acts both by its impact and its weight, escaping from thebottom of the wheel in an annular stream; and to this end the in ventionconsists in the peculiar construction and arrangement of parts, ashereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the claims.

. Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part ofthis specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate cor--responding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a plan view of my improved water-wheel with part of thechute-section and also part of the gate broken out. Fig. 2 is atransverse sectional elevation of the same, and Fig. 3 is a section ofFig. 1 on the line 00 0c.

The shaft to is set upright in any suitable step, b, and is providedwith a hub, c, to fill the central space for a suitable distancearoundsaid shaft, to prevent said space from being filled withdead-water, or that which wouldbe practically inoperative, so far asdriving-power is concerned, because of being so near'the cen ter. Thebuckets d are attached to this hub radially, said buckets being madewider than the height of the hub, and extending above it to the heightof the groove 0 in the fixed center 8 of the case, saidextensionbeing'nearly. vertical. From the center of the buckets downwardsaid buckets curve backward, as seen clearly at g in-Fig. 3, so that theweight of the water acts on them after the impact has been expended-onthe side of the upperparts, against which it is projected by the obliquechutes h, arranged in an annulus over the buckets. Between the bucketsand the chutes I arrange an annular gate, i, fitting in the groove 6. ofthe central hub, s, and in a groove, j, in the rim is of the chute-case,and having openings Z, which coincide with the chutes when the gate isop e11, and which rest under the partitions m, between the chutes, whenthe gate is closed, said gate being connected by arms a withthe seg-'ment 0, with which the gate opening and closing shaft 1) is geared.Below the wheel is a bottom, q, attached to the lower edge of curb t,and having chutes u for the escape of the wa ter after acting on thebuckets, said chutes being coincident with the-chutes h above, throughwhich the water enters the wheel, and equal in number to them. Thesechutes u are inclined in the same directionas the chutes h, and theycause the current to set more powerfully in the direction in which thewheel turns, by retarding the discharge of the water, and therebyopposing the tendency of the buckets to set it backward, than it doeswithout them, thus increasing the efficiency of the wheel. I make apacking-box, w, around the shaft 011 thehub s, and cover it with a cap,3/, to prevent the escape of any water along the shaft. The bot tom qenables the wheel to be set lower down in the backwater than otherwheels, without detriment thereby, because the plate q being closedexcept at the chutes a, through which the inflowing water to the wheelescapes, and said openings being only of the requisite size for theescape of said inflowing water, the backwater has no inlet to the wheelto create back action.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desiretosecure by Letters Patent, is. I

1. The combination, with the buckets d and the chutes h, of the bottomq, having dischargepassages to, inclined in the same direction as thechutes h, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. 7

2. The combination, with the radial buckets d, vertical, or nearly so,in the upper half, and having the rearward curve 9, and the chutes h, ofthe bottom q, having discharge-passages u, inclined in the samedirection as the chutes h, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

3. The combination, with the shaft to, provided with the hub c, thecurved buckets d g, secured radially to said hub, and the chutes h, ofthe gate 1', provided with openings Z, and the bottom q, provided withdischarge-openings a, substantially as and forthe purpose set forth.

4. The combination of chutes h m, gate 13, buckets d, and the bottom q,substantially as described. 1

GEORGE W. CONVERSE.

Witnesses: I

' J OHN M. .MORGAN,

ALPHEUS J. WILLIAMSON.

